Brighton Youth Action Group in full swing

BYAG stands for ‘Brighton Youth Action Group’ and in November 2022, Council endorsed this group, demonstrating their commitment to having a youth voice in our municipality.

From the two meetings held so far, the group has attracted 15 local young people from across the municipality to come together and start sharing their thoughts on what is important for youth living and working in the Brighton municipality. Key issues that have been discussed include a lack of access to local mental health support and no fun things to do after school or on weekends. movement for place-based change that is held annually in Australia, and this year was in lutruwita/Tasmania, with the Brighton Civic Centre in Bridgewater one of the main gathering places within the kutalayna area. ChangeFest showcases creativity and celebration of communities leading change in ways that care for country and all people, along with stories of changemakers working to change the system at local, regional and national levels. Congratulations to all involved in making this such a success. Brighton Council was incredibly proud to be an official supporter of ChangeFest23.

The group, with support from Council’s community development officer and PCYC, are currently planning an event for Youth Week 2023 which is held from 1-7 May 2023.

• Council has launched the Brighton Youth Action Group (BYAG). Council was unanimous in feeling it was time that we do all that we can to activate young people’s voices in our community and bring the ideas of some of our young people and leaders to the table. We have been heartened by the number of young people coming along to have their voice heard. If you know a young person aged between 12 and 24 years who you think might want to contribute in this way, make sure they get along to the next BYAG catch-up.

• Some of the best in the field of sustainability were able to share their knowledge and expertise at the Big Weekend of Sustainable Living Ideas held in Bridgewater by Sustainable Living Tasmania at the end of March, with forums on sustainable food, energy and waste management.

Brighton Council was a major sponsor of this event. This comes at a time when I couldn’t be prouder of us as a Council taking leadership in the area of climate action. Brighton Council has officially set a reduction in emissions target (an 85% emissions reduction by 2030), with more on this to come soon.

• I would like to thank The Friends of Old Beach Foreshore group for the recent Clean Up Australia event they held at Old

Beach supported by Brighton Council and the Derwent Catchment Project, who assist with teaching weed management skills to the group. This group throughout the year show leadership in wanting to make our environment a better place for everyone to share.

• Finally, in recognition of all our dedicated volunteers, Brighton Council is working with Volunteering Tasmania to co-design with our community a Volunteering Strategy that sets in place goals, activities and actions to ensure the capability and effectiveness of our volunteer numbers into the future. This strategy is currently being developed and will be brought to Council in draft form by the middle of this year.

I hope you read the stories in this latest edition with the same amount of pride and admiration for who we are as a community as I do, and feel heartened by how many of our local leaders are stepping up in these times of uncertainty and change.